Dia Mirza has recalled the personal financial risk she took to get Bobby Jasoos made, revealing that she mortgaged her first home to secure a bank loan when other financing options fell through.
Dia Mirza has opened up about one of the biggest financial risks she took during her career as a producer.
Looking back at the making of Vidya Balan-starrer Bobby Jasoos, Dia revealed that she put up her first home as security for a bank loan after prospective studios and financiers backed away from the project.
The film, directed by Samar Shaikh, was released in 2014 and featured Vidya as Bilqees Ahmed, a woman from Hyderabad who dreams of becoming a detective.
For Dia, the decision to finance the film personally came down to her belief in its story and the people involved.
Dia Mirza put her first home on the line
According to Dia, the project had reached a stage where the principal pieces were already in place. Vidya Balan had committed her dates, the team was assembled and the film was ready to move into production.
The problem was finding the financial backing needed to take it forward.
When potential studios and financiers withdrew, Dia faced the possibility of putting the project on hold.
Instead, she chose to secure a bank loan against the first home she had purchased after years of working.
“I had bought my first home after years of working, and I mortgaged it to take a bank loan so we could make the film.”
Dia said the decision did not feel particularly heroic to her at the time. She described it as an extension of her belief in the project and a responsibility toward the team that had already committed to making it.
“It wasn’t something I did because I thought it was brave. At that moment, it simply felt like standing by my conviction.”
Why Dia believed in Bobby Jasoos
The producer said three things gave her confidence: the story, the team and Vidya Balan’s commitment to the film.
The project had an unusual premise for its time, centred on a woman determined to establish herself as a detective while navigating the obstacles around her.
Vidya’s involvement was also significant. With her dates committed and the production team ready, Dia felt that abandoning the film would mean walking away from people who had already invested their time and trust in the project.
“We had a story we believed in, an extraordinary actor who had trusted us with her time and talent, and a team that was ready to make the film. I felt we had to honour that.”
Dia Mirza says Vidya Balan deserved to be paid fairly
The producer also highlighted another aspect of the project that remains important to her: Vidya’s remuneration.
Dia said she wanted the actor’s compensation to reflect the responsibility she carried as the central performer in the film.
“One thing I remain very proud of is that we were able to pay Vidya what we believed she deserved.”
She pointed out that the commercial and creative responsibility of a film can rest heavily on its lead actor, and argued that the same recognition should apply regardless of gender.
“If we were willing to recognise and remunerate a male actor for carrying a film, why should it be any different for a woman?”
‘Women supporting women’ was part of the journey
For Dia, Bobby Jasoos became about more than getting a film into theatres.
She described the experience as an example of women creating opportunities for other women within an industry where female-led projects have historically faced barriers.
Looking back, Dia said she remembers the opportunity to support Vidya’s work as much as she remembers the financial risk.
“I was young, I believed fiercely in the film and I was willing to put what I had on the line for that belief.”
She added that what remains most meaningful to her is having been able to support another woman’s talent.
“Women supporting women can change not only whose stories get told, but who gets the opportunity to tell them.”
Vidya Balan played detective Bilqees Ahmed
Released in 2014, Bobby Jasoos starred Vidya Balan as Bilqees Ahmed, a Hyderabad-based woman who wants to become a private detective.
The film was directed by Samar Shaikh and backed by Dia Mirza as a producer.
The project arrived during a period when Hindi cinema was seeing growing interest in stories led by female characters and filmmakers, although the financing and commercial structures around such projects remained challenging.
For Dia, the film continues to represent a particularly personal chapter in her career—not simply because she took a substantial financial risk, but because she chose to back a story and an actor she strongly believed in.
